Hello people! It’s time for a new episode (I know, I know, it’s past time, this was the episode that almost wasn’t). This time out we’re making grilled cheese! Such fun, and so easy… We’ve chosen some delicious cheeses to feature, including Cotswold, Gruyere (our fondue sandwich) and aged farmhouse Cheddar. We’re using sourdough bread, which gives the sandwiches a nice tang. Here are a few grilled cheese tips: 

-         Grate your cheese: Grated cheese melts more quickly and easily than slices.  

-         Butter the bread, not the pan: That’s the outside of the sandwich, not the  inside. Buttering the bread on the outside ensures that the sandwich will brown evenly. 

-         Cover your sandwich for the first few minutes: This will conserve the heat and melt the cheese more quickly. Flip the sandwich after about 4 minutes and then leave it uncovered. 

Grilled cheese sandwiches are ripe for experimentation. Why not explore with cheeses and breads you find in your local gourmet store? How about a bleu cheese sandwich? Gouda or Fontina would be delicious melted up. As for breads, brioche would make a very tasty nibble! So would a rich hearty 7 grain with plenty of nuts and crunchy bits. 

Just in time for the holidays, we have a new Brini Maxwell store! If you click on the “Shop” link at BriniMaxwell.com you’ll be directed to our new store featuring fun Brini Maxwell products, some you may be familiar with, some that are brand new! One of the new products is the Brini poster. It’s a fun, inexpensive way to bring me into your home. Have a look!

Hi people! Welcome to another episode. This week is all about customization – we’re customizing a brownie mix and I’m going to give you some ideas for making mixes your own. 

The benefit of working with a mix is the convenience of it. You can throw together a quick dessert in a few minutes, bake it and have it ready in no time at all. This convenience comes at a price though. That price isn’t taste, as most mixes produce quite tasty results. That price is individuality. Making your mark with a mix is the aim of this episode. 

Now we’ve made a traditional brownie mix a bit more posh by giving it an island flavor. We’ve added coconut and coconut rum to the mix. Here’s how: 

You’ll need: 

1 Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge brownie mix

½ cup oil

¼ cup coconut rum

3 eggs

¼ cup shredded sweetened coconut

Dash more coconut rum 

Prepare mix as directed on the box, swapping out the water for the coconut rum and adding the coconut after the other ingredients have been combined. Add the dash of rum after the shredded coconut has been mixed in. Bake as directed on the box. Frost the finished product with Buttercream icing (flavored with coconut extract) and garnish with more shredded coconut. 

The key to making a mix your own and achieving professional results is preserving the chemistry of baking. I have a friend who always customizes his mixes and his cakes are always delicious, but they frequently don’t hold together all that well and tend to be a bit lopsided. The reason for this is that he hasn’t preserved the balance of liquid to solid ingredients and hasn’t allowed for the leavening process.  

The reason we add a dash of rum to the mix is to account for the added bulk to the recipe from the shredded coconut and the liquid lost more quickly due to evaporation during the baking process – alcohol evaporates more quickly than water. 

I’m especially fond of doctoring brownie mixes. One of my favorite holiday recipes is made with a dark chocolate brownie mix, into which you add a teaspoon of peppermint extract. Then frost the brownies with butter cream icing and sprinkle crushed peppermint candy canes on top. I call them my peppermint bark brownies. I’ll be featuring them in an upcoming episode around the holidays, so be sure and look for it! 

If you’re interested in learning more about customizing mixes be sure and have a look at The Cake Mix Doctor. Anne Byrn is a whiz at making mixes interesting.  

The NetFlix film for this time around is a perfectly delightful screw-ball comedy from 1939 with Claudette Colbert and Don Ameche called Midnight. It’s pure catnip and makes for a remarkably entertaining evening. Be sure and rent it and post your thoughts about it here. It’s available at NetFlix, and by clicking on the link or the ad on the home page you support this podcast! 

Speaking of films, for those of you in New York I’ll be hosting classic films again at Chelsea Clearview Cinemas every Thursday in July and August. The line up is lots of fun. For July we’re watching: 

7/2 Murder on the Orient Express

7/9 Evil Under the Sun

7/16 The Long Long Trailer

7/23 Kiss me Kate

7/30 What’s Up Doc 

Be sure and join us if you’re in town! 

Last, but not least, we’re having a sale at Felix Populi. We’re selling off some of our back stock on some great things for your home at up to 60% off! Be sure and come by and have a look.

Hello people! This week we have an episode for those of you that are particularly anal retentive. I’m showing you how to iron fringe. Keeping all our strands going in the right direction is important! 

In addition to that we have lots of things to talk about. I was recently featured on the cover of the online crafting magazine “Snippets”, which is a part of the delightful UK site Cut out and Keep. The article is a lot of fun. Be sure and have a look! The aprons featured in the article are available on Felix Populi and we’ve just reduced the price from $32 to $25. They make great hostess gifts and are fun and practical in the kitchen. Be sure and have a look! 

Our Netflix Screening Series film this time around is another thriller – I thought it would be fun to compare the last film (Rear Window) which is so well known, to this obscure little gem about a concentration camp survivor who assumes a friend’s identity and moves to San Francisco to be mother to her son. I discovered it on Netflix using their Movies You’ll Love feature. It’s The House on Telegraph Hill from 1951, directed by Robert Wise, starring Richard Basehart and Valentina Cortese (perhaps best known for her turn in Truffaut’s Day For Night [1973]). I was very impressed with the atmospheric quality of the film and the location shots in San Francisco are fun to compare to other films with a San Francisco setting (They feel more Sudden Fear, than they do Vertigo). Be sure and have a look at it. It’s definitely worth a screening. You don’t need Netflix to  participate in the discussion, just leave a comment to this post down below, but remember, you can sign up for Netflix here and support the podcast. They have plans for as little as $5 a month.  

Last, but not least I’ve designed a delightful new table setting for spring for Felix Populi. It’s perfect for Mother’s Day. Treat your mom to a set!

Hi people! Brini here and this week we have a delicious stew for you…Hungarian goulash! As stews go, it’s very simple – very easy. Here’s how: 

You’ll need: 

2 lbs stew beef cut into 1” cubes

3 Tbs. flour

2 Tbs. vegetable oil

¼ cup chopped onion

1 bay leaf

2 whole cloves

1 ½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp pepper

1 Tbs. paprika

1½ cups beef stock 

Begin by coating the beef with the flour. Heat the oil in a sauce pan or electric skillet over medium heat and add the beef. Cook until brown on all sides, then add the onion. Stir for about 5 minutes until the onion is tender, then add the remaining ingredients. Blend well while bringing to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to simmer. Let cook for 2 to 2½ hours or until fork tender.  

Serve over buttered noodles or boiled potatoes. 

This dish is just great for the last chilly days of winter. Perfect for warming up after a blustery afternoon outdoors! 

I’m so glad What’s Up Doc was such a success! It’s one of my favorite films, and it’s nice to know that so many of you enjoyed it too. 

The next film we’ll be discussing in our NetFlix series is completely different! We’ll be talking about Rear Window – Hitchcock’s delightfully ghoulish (not goulash) classic featuring Jimmy Stewart and a beguiling Grace Kelly. If you don’t have it you can always find it on NetFlix, and by joining through my site you help support this show! 

That’s all for this week! Let me know what you think about Rear Window…

Hi people! This week we have another archival episode for you. This segment is from the first season of the original show. My guest Shonda Lear shows us how to make a statement with floral arranging. Her arrangement is quite remarkable and pleases Mary Ellen no end, for unexpected reasons – or perhaps those reasons should have been obvious to me – watch and see. Shonda is the brainchild of David Mandel, whose company The Show Must Go On creates fanciful jewelry and objet d’art.

I’m so happy to kick off the film discussion feature of this blog, inspired by Netflix. Our first film is one of my favorites – What’s Up Doc. If you haven’t seen it, you’re in for a treat. Inspired by the screw ball comedies of the 30’s, Peter Bogdanovich’s 1972 film features Barbra Streisand and Ryan O’Neil and has the distinction of being Madeline Kahn’s first film. I highly recommend it. Add it to your Netflix queue and screen it, then post your comments here. If you haven’t joined Netflix yet, you’re missing out on a delightful diversion and a great value. Click here to join and support the podcast at the same time! Our next film will be announced with our next episode in around two weeks.

That’s all this time!

Hello people, and happy holidays! This time around we’re featuring two musical numbers from my holiday show at the Cutting Room, here in New York in 2006. I’m working with the very talented Dave Downing Quartet. I hope you enjoy the numbers and have a delightful holiday season!